RecReflect with Jordan and Will

Rec Besties Jordan and Will get the chance to talk together about their love and passion for recreation. They talked about camping, their best local spots and what everyone can learn if they think about recreation as vital to the human experience. They don't articulate it that well but we love them anyways. 

No. 1 fan, Jessica Burke, finally joins Will and Jordan on the podcast. If you don't know Jessica, you have not been paying attention to TRAPS. They talk TRAPS, education and end the chat talking about the next institute. 

Erin Hart- Grand Prairie, Assistant Director of Parks, Art & Recreation The youngest TRAPS president, Erin Hart, joins the guys and talks about her lifelong love of recreation and her vision for the organization. Fun, engaging but more importantly, incredibly sincere, Erin explains how recreation is important for all of us. If her leadership style could be summarized its “bring them to the table.” 

Proud new father and TRAPS Legislative Task Force Chair, Jeff Achee, joins the guys for a special episode on the importance of everyone in recreation paying attention to legislation. He shares insights on Prop 5 and how we can get involved with TRAPS “Walk the Halls” in Austin. He shares tips on how to get involved and how we can get others to advocate for recreation.

The guys welcome Lauren Reichstein, Camp Director for the Girls Scouts of Middle Tennessee. They talk camp life, how COVID changed programming and all things recreation. 

Jordan and Will sit down with Dr. Danny Twilley, Assistant Dean of the Brad and Alys Smith Outdoor Economic Development Collaborative (OEDC). Dr. Twilley talks recreation and leadership in this new episode. He suggests that we should all follow our passions and figuring out each of our purposes. Listeners also get great advice of how to learn from mistakes and failures. 

Dr. Stuart Brown (the power of play genius) and Tom Norquist (PlayCore innovator) sit down with Jordan and Will to discuss the essence and the power of play. Dr. Brown and Tom talk about how injected play into the workplace can only serve to make your organization, culture and morale better. They end up talking about games and even play one on the episode. 

Jordan and Will chat with Dr. Shannon Coates, the Director of Frisco PARD. Dr. Coates shares her journey that guided her from Florida to Play Frisco. She also gives the guys some great advice learning to say yes to the right opportunities at the right time.

Ann Beck, Marketing and Communications Manager at Mansfield. Ann gives the guys some great advice for communicating well as a leader. The chat ends with Ann’s awesome philosophy of “Be Authentic to everyone, everywhere.”

Jordan talks to a Mariella Fernandez, PhD, Assistant Professor of Recreation at Clemson. They reminisce on their grad school days in College Station and transition into talking about Dr. Fernandez's research, park disparities and lack of access for minority populations. She also give practical advice of how to combat this at the local level.